Took the Cruiser camping last night, mostly because with the rear seats removed (to save weight; I've been trying to hypermile in the Cruiser lately) you can haul a helluva lot of gear. Anyway, the campsite's about five miles down a not-crazy-but-still-pretty-rough logging road, and it was a good opportunity to put it to the test (in stock form, sort of as a baseline). Lots of bumps and mud puddles, but it didn't do too badly:
It's actually muddier than it looks, but maybe I'm just biased. Anyhow, front ground clearance was as big an issue as I anticipated, as the shallow approach angle meant I was grounding the air dam and front fascia on every bump.
Note the half-air dam.
Close up of the damage.
Also, apparently there's some sort of plastic skid plate under the engine, because I tore it most of the way off on a bump. A
plastic skid plate. Really, Chrysler? Damn...
So yeah, the Cruiser is going to need some front-end work in the future. Perhaps get a new fascia for off-roading and cut off every bit of plastic below the bumper cover? Also, with no steel plating between the bottom of the engine/trans and the road, rocks are a big danger. Ideas?